If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

At least five victims were dead and more than a dozen people injured in a series of shootings during a traffic stop and outside multiple shopping centers in western Texas on Saturday night, according to initial reports.

The victims include a state trooper and officers with the police departments of Odessa and Midland, officials said.

The shootings happened in the area between the two cities; Odessa is home to a campus of the University of Texas and the famed “Friday Night Lights” high school.

Midland Police announced at 6:30 p.m. that a suspect had been shot and killed by law enforcement at the Cinergy Movies multiplex in Odessa.

But law enforcement was still searching for possible additional suspects, Midland Police said.

The gunfire began during a traffic stop on I-20, between the two cities, police told reporters. At least one gunman opened fire, striking a state trooper, during the stop.

It was not clear whether one or two suspects then took off, eventually abandoning their vehicle, police said.

At around 6 p.m., officers were pursuing two other vehicles. One was a gold Toyota pickup.

The other was a hijacked or stolen United States Postal Service truck, authorities said.

People in the cities of Odessa and Midland were being told to avoid the I-20 highway during the pursuit.

The campus of the University of Texas of the Permian Basin went on lockdown.

It was unclear whether the members of law enforcement or any of the other victims survived the shooting, a spokesman for the city of Odessa told CNN.

A hospital told the local ABC affiliate that of the six injured, three are in critical condition.

“We believe there are two shooters in two separate vehicles,” the Midland Police wrote on Facebook during the pursuit.

“One suspect is believed to be at the Cinergy in Midland and the other is believed to be driving on Loop 250 in Midland.

“The suspect just hijacked a U.S. mail carrier truck and was last seen in the area of 38th and Walnut. Everyone is encouraged to get off the road and use extreme caution!”

Midland officials said one of the suspects shot a trooper in the westbound lanes of I-20, shooting several people afterwards.

The shootings come 28 days after a Texas man slaughtered 22 people at a Walmart in El Paso.

The death toll rose to seven Sunday after a gunman's rampage that left many more injured following what began as a routine traffic stop in Odessa, police in the West Texas city said.

Odessa police spokesman Steve LeSueur said Sunday that at least one person remains in “life-threatening” condition. Police Chief Michael Gerke previously said the gunman, whose name has not been released, was fatally shot by police.

"There is no longer an immediate threat to the public, and this situation continues to be investigated by local, state and federal officials," Gerke said in a statement.

The assault took place one day before a series of gun law changes in state that ease restrictions on where Texans can carry or store firearms, from foster homes to churches.

The shooting began Saturday afternoon when a state trooper pulled over the suspect, described by authorities as a white male in his mid-30s and driving a gold-colored car, was pulled over for a traffic violation on Interstate 20 between Midland and Odessa.

The driver opened fire on the trooper before fleeing westbound on the interstate, shooting his way to Odessa, stealing a mail truck and continuing his assault, police said.

The suspect then shot one Odessa officer and one Midland Police Department officer before authorities returned fire and killed the suspect near a Cinergy movie theater in Odessa.

Shauna Saxton, an Odessa grandmother, described to CBS7 a harrowing encounter with the shooter as she was driving in the area. She said she heard gunshots, then found herself next to the car the shooter was driving.

She said she saw his face and his gun, and was thinking she had to get her grandson, in the back seat, to safety. She said she was boxed in by other cars, but slammed her horn and was able to squeeze out of the area to the sound of gunshots behind her.

Dramatic eyewitness video appears to show parts of the shootout. The eyewitness video, taken by Alex Woods, appears to show the scene outside the theater from across a field.

"There's a shooting going on in Odessa," a man in the bed of a pickup truck says before gunshots are heard. "Oh god, they're shooting right there," he says as he turns the camera toward the building.

More shots are heard, and the man tells people near him to get down. More police cars arrive, and the man says "He's shooting them. Oh, he killed him." But it was not clear who was shooting.

Police initially said five people were confirmed dead and 21 injured, but later updated the death total to seven. It was not clear if the deaths included the shooter.

The Ector County Independent School District said one of its students was among those killed.

"We are heartbroken and outraged by the violence that struck our community and our school district today," the district said in a statement. "We are learning that we have lost friends, family members, as well as one of our students. Our lives have been changed forever."

Besides the initial trooper, two other troopers were wounded, the Texas Department of Safety said. The tragedy became the latest mass shooting after others this summer in El Paso, Texas; Dayton, Ohio; and Gilroy, California.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who was traveling to the area on Sunday, ordered Texas flags across the state to be lowered to half-staff in honor of the victims.

"I thank the first responders who have acted swiftly and admirably under pressure, Abbott said. "And I want to remind all Texans that we will not allow the Lone Star State to be overrun by hatred and violence."
.